Placement Over Power

The first sport we ever enrolled our kids into was T-ball. Zoe was 6 and Jett was 4.

I remember standing around Jett in the outfield during his first practice teaching him that when the ball was hit, his job was to go get the ball and throw it to first. Some teammates took turns practicing hitting the ball, and the a remaining hoard of fellow teammates in the outfield would all rush to the ball once it was hit. Whoever got it would throw it to 1st (sometimes it turned into a bit of a wrestling match to get the ball😂). We engrained it in Jett’s head: Get the ball, throw it to first. Get the ball, throw it to first. It didn’t take him long to figure it out. That’s my boy!

Then it was time to practice hitting off the tee. The coach places his feet in the correct position, shows him how to hold the bat, and instructs him to swing at the ball. Wham! Jett nails it! The coach and I start saying “Go Jett go!!”

So, Jett does as he was taught: Go get the ball, throw it to first!

Whoops.

The coach stops him before he throws it to first and we all laugh to ourselves as we realize our failure in properly instructing him what to do when hitting the ball.

I happened to catch this moment on camera, and it always brings a smile to my face:

I've said this before, but I love watching my kids play sports. It is one of the most rewarding experiences so far as a parent. If you read my most recent post, you’ll recall that this same Jett has taken quite a liking to sports, especially football, which has its own set of complicated rules for children to learn. I never played football as a kid, so it’s been interesting watching coaches teach children all of the many rules involved.

For a child playing a new sport, it’s exciting and challenging! They’re out there learning a new thing they’ve never done before and learning how to work together as a team to accomplish a goal. At first it can be quite confusing, but once it clicks and they start succeeding, it can be very fulfilling.

Soccer

One of the most common sports that parents put their kids in is soccer. The rules of soccer are fairly simple for kids: No touching the ball with you hands, kick the ball into that goal. Obviously there are more rules than that, but for small children starting out, that’s pretty much the only rules they remember (even then, the "no hands" rule is loosely followed for little ones!)

Watching young children play soccer can be wildly entertaining. Typically a hoard of children from both teams constantly follows the ball, like a herd of cats chasing a laser pointer, each kid trying to kick it the general direction of the opposite goal. These young children have it tough. Not only do they have to play against kids on the other team, but often it seems they are fighting their own teammates for the ball as well!

Now soccer was my main sport growing up. I loved it. I played it constantly. I knew all the rules and worked hard to improve my skills. Around the age of 12, I made it on to a competitive soccer team: Chugiak Soccer Club (CSC), in my community of Eagle River, Alaska. I made a lot of friends and great memories on this soccer team.

At one point, we had a German coach whose name escapes me, but he was a wonderful coach. He spent a lot of time with us running drills, practicing our shots, and telling us everything he could to help us improve individually and as a team. Of everything he taught us, there is one phrase I’ll never forget that he used to repeat over and over in regards to shooting the ball in the goal. He would say in his heavy German accent:

“Placement over power”

This meant that when approaching the goal and prepping for a shot, it is more important to accurately place the ball where you want it to go rather than just kick it as hard as you can at the goal.

Allow my daughter Zoe to illustrate from a recent soccer game:

This shot from Zoe reminded me of my German coaches instructions: Placement over power. Zoe didn’t just kick it as hard as she could, she aimed for the corner, and executed. That's my girl!

In my own experience playing soccer, in my experience of watching others play soccer, and even occasionally in watching professional soccer, I have witnessed what happens when this advice is not followed. Often a powerful shot flies up and over the goal, or out of control straight towards the goalie. I used to struggle with this all the time. In the heat of the moment, in the excitement of a breakaway, you just kick the ball as hard as you can and hope it goes in! Then I’d stand back and wonder how I could have kicked the ball over the goal when I was 5 feet in front of it, or how out of all the open goal spaces I could have kicked the ball into, I just had to kick it straight at the goalie...

Training myself to value a properly placed and accurately shot ball over a powerful fast kick, was a skill that had to be learned.

Goal Setting Takes Practice

When it comes to goal setting, I try to visualize my "goal." The actual width of a professional soccer goal is 24 feet wide. But if I'm actually wanting to score, I can't just shoot towards that wide opening and hope the ball goes in (keep in mind there's a goalie!). Instead, my target within that goal must be much smaller and then accurately executed. I'm no professional althelte by any means, but I think that most soccer players would agree that aiming towards a lower or upper corner is ideal for scoring, a task that can be quite difficult to accomplish without a lot of practice.

Now this isn't to say that just because you lack training and practice means that you don't take shots. As the great philospher, Michael Scott, once said:

"'You miss 100% of the shots you don't take'-Wayne Gretzkey" -Michael Scott😁

For heaven's sake, if you're headed towards the goal and you have the opportunity, practice or no practice, take the shot! Ready or not here you go! That's actually your best learning moment, your best training opportunity.

But placement over power is a better "goal" executing strategy, and not just for soccer.

When it comes to setting goals, I'm not great at it myself. New Years rolls around, I write down a few goals or things I'd like to accomplish, that lasts for a few weeks, and then it's back to normal life. And the problem is, my goals tend to be too widely set, too broad or too vague. I don't plan a strategy for execution. I loose motivation. I hope I'm not the only one that feels this way.

However the few times in my life that I've set a goal, made a plan, and executed that plan, those moments feel amazing. Just like scoring a soccer goal!

My Triathlon

My triathlon last month is a good example of this. The nice thing about something like a triathlon is that there is a set date and set amount of money I pay for the event. This is motivating for me. So I made a plan-

Mondays I ran.

Tuesdays I biked.

Wednesdays I rested.

Thursdays I swam.

Fridays I ran.

Saturdays I biked.

Sundays I rested.

I wasn't perfect at it, but for the most part I followed this schedule. As it got closer, I was worried I wouldn't be ready, especially for the swim (See my post from last month about that!). But when race day came, although it was very tough and my time wasn't great, I did it! The feeling was exhilarating! I was very proud of myself for setting a goal, planning how to accomplish that goal, and executing it.

I suppose I could have POWERED through it. I could have neglected training and practice and when race day came just hit it as hard as I could and hoped for the best. But I doubt I would have succeeded, or even finished.

Sometimes no matter what you do, the goalie is just too good and will still block your shot. The obstacles are just too great and you won't quite acheive your goal. Your carefully laid plans get ruined. The world sometimes has a way of making this happen. And thats good practice too. But properly placed, planned, and executed goals will have an increased probability of success.

I hope some day I can run into my old German soccer coach again and thank him for the life-long impactful lesson of placement over power.

In the mean time, as I cheer from the sidelines, I'll keep enjoying watching my kids take their shots, however those shots turn out.